Ticking Clocks
by lillutonboi
Summary: Harry dies and enters the after-life. After everything, he has completed the goal set to him by Dumbledore. Post DH. One Shot.


He could hear his breathing slowing. He could see the faces of loved ones and admirers smiling down at him with tears that resembled glistening pearls in their eyes. He could feel his chest rising and falling, the gap between breaths widening everytime he did so and in his his hand, clutched against his chest, the Elder wand and next to it, the pheonix wand.

Harry could feel himself edging towards the end. The end of life. He had instructed his son, Albus to recover the Elder wand from Dumbledore's tomb using the invisibility cloak. He had told no-one, no-one that was still alive of the power that the Elder wand possessed when weilded by it's master, and so, wanted to make sure that the power died with him. Everytime his heart thumped, he felt the wand lose some of it's power and it emitted red sparks. This was it. His vision had begun to get blurry around the edges. He had a matter of minuted left. Soon, he would be with his loved ones.

Though he would not be there to witness the after effects, he was excited that he will have completed his last mission owed to Dumbledore. To die peacefully, naturally, so that none could ever again weild the full power of the Elder wand. He could feel his heart slowing.

He looked at his family, all whom had never taken their eyes off him. He looked at Lily.

"Can you do me one last deed?" He managed to say.

"Anything." She replied, a sad smile on her face.

"When I am gone, take this wand and destroy it. Do not simply break it and bury it, destroy is properly. Use magical means. Will you do that?"

"Yes dad. Of course." She replied. She smiled again and Harry's head fell, as if in slow motion to the pillow. He felt his eyes involutarily close and then, all was dark.

----------------------------------------------------

Then, he existed. He lay face down, completely naked on some sort of surface. He was curious as to whether he would once again be in Kings Cross. The only why to find out, he sussed, would be to open his eyes.

So he did. He got to his feet and looked hard around him. Even though he wore no clothes, he was not cold. Neither was he warm, he simply wasn't anything. He also discovered, just like last time he was in Kings Cross, for that's where he was, that he wasn't wearing glasses, he had no scars, including that which Voldemort had given him and he was once again in the form of his seventeen year old self.

All of sudden, he wasn't alone. The was another, maybe a year yonger than him, that is, a year yonger than his seventeen year old self. A girl. He did no recognise her. She, like him a minute earlier, was bare bodied and laying face down on the floor. Harry, remebering how it had worked last time wished for clothes and not a moment after, slightly to the left of him, were robes of black with emerald green lightning bolt shaped symbols on it. The girl had not moved all the time he had dressed and still had her eyes shut. He did not attempted to approach her. He waited for her to move in her own time. He simply moved to a bench and sat, waiting for her. After for felt like hours, for there were no clocks or sun to tell the time, she opened her eyes. After a few moments of realizing she could see, her eyes fixed on Harry, who was looking at her. She, out of instinct, covered herself up and soon found robes near her. Harry just smiled and waited for her to be ready. He did not feel impatient or annoyed.

Soon, she approached him. She had smooth brown hair, brown eyes, a slender figure and smooth-looking skin. She smiled, unsure as to what she should say. She sat next to him and after several attempts at opening and closing her mouth she gave up.

"Your dead." Harry finally spoke up.

"But how am I still here?" She replied.

"Well, I am not entirely sure, as I have only been here a short while, but my guess is that this is the afterlife. Whatever that may be."

"So where is everyone else?" she enquired, she continued to look around. "Is this Kings Cross station?"

"You know, I do believe it is." He said matter-of-factly. "I believe that for us to see the others, me must as you might say, move on. Try to think of this as a train station. We can catch the train back and return to life, though as a ghost, not as a human being or we can get on the train that goes forward, to the other-side."

"How do you know this?" She said, unsure as to whether she should believe this stranger.

"For sure, I don't. It is only my guess." He replied.

"So I could go back and see my loved ones?" she asked sounding desperate.

"Yes, you could. But I believe that would be most unwise. To be trapped there for all eternity." He said trying to discourage her. He remembered how nearly-headless Nick described how he missed life and how he regretted choosing to come back.

"How do you know so much about this place?" She asked now sounding curious.

"I could not possibly state that I knew anything about this place. I have been here once before and so I was more prepared for my next journey here." They now sat in silence, he could now see she was mulling things over in her mind. He waited and did not interupt until she spoke to him.

"How would I…er…'move on'?" She asked. Before Harry could answer, a deep voice spoke behind them.

"You would simply board a train my dear girl!"

"Professor!" Harry shouted as he turned to lay eyes on his old headmaster.

"Well, I'm not sure about that! I'm not much of a professor anymore, being dead and all." He smiled as Harry ran to him and embraced him in a rib-cracking hug that he didn't expect a man of Dumbledore's age to be able to accomplish.

"Professor, I did it! I died a natural death, none were able to conquer me and claim power of the Elder wand! Does that mean it's over?" He was buzzing with exitement like a schoolboy waiting to be praised.

"Ideed it does. It is truly over now. I must say, well done!" Albus looked incredibly happy now. The girl behind them gave a slight cough to remind them she was still there. "Yes, quite right!" Though she hadn't said anything. "It is time to move on! We can't stay here forever! I imagine it would get quite boring!"

He inserted his middle finger and thumb into his mouth a wistled hard, causing a silver train to fade into existance from the mist. It looked remarkably like the Hogwarts express.

Once they boarded Harry could see the remarkable resemblance to the Hogwarts express and once again, just like in his first year, he was on his way to some unknown place.


End file.
